Method and apparatus for casting metal cups



. 1D. PEPPER METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CASTI A ril 15 NG METAL CUPS Filed July 22, L921 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 April 15, 1924- D. PEPPER METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING METAL CUPS Filed July 22. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet D. PEPPER METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING METAL CUPS Filed July 22. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Aprifi 15, 382% v 1,49%730 D. PEPPER METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR CASTING METAL CUPS,

- Filed July 22. 1921 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 a Patented Apr. 15, 1924.

PATENT O FICE.

DAVID PEPPER, 0F PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

unrnon Am) APPARATUS ron cnsrme METAL curs Application filed July 22, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, DAVID PEPPER, a citizen of the United States of America, residing in the city and county of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have in vented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods and Apparatus for Casting Metal Cups, of which the following is a true and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, which form a part thereof.

My invention relates to the casting of thin wall metal cups of the kind used in the manufacture of electric batteries. In my Patent No. 1,387,864 I have described a method and apparatus for making such cups and my present invention relates to improvements on the general type of machine and in the method of operation described in my said patent. The main object of my invention is to provide for charging molten metal into the cup molds-in a quite fine stream and in limited quantity not materially in excess of the quantity needed to form the cup so that there will be little or no danger of imprisoning air in the mold during the casting operation with consequent air bubbios and flaws in the casting. Another object which I have principally in view is to provide means by which as soon as the necessary amount of metal is charged into the mold the plunger, having the form of the inside of the cup, will be forced into the mold very rapidly. These and other features characteristic of my invention, will be best understood in connection with the drawings in which they are illustrated and in which- 'Fi re 1' is a sectional elevation of a machine embodying my improvements and adapted for use with my improved method, the view being taken as .on the line ,1--1 of Fig. 2. 4

Figure 2 is a plan view of the machine.

Figure 3 is a sectional plan view taken as on the line 33 of Fig. 1 and shown on a reduced scale.

Figure 4 is a development showing in a diagrammatic Way the mechanism for actuating the plungers relative to the mold as the molds and plungers reach difierent points in the paths through which they are carried.

Figure 5 is a view practically in continuation of Figure 4 showing the cam which comes into operation with the trough stripping ofi the cups from the plungers.

Serial No. 486,797.

Figure 6 is a sectionalview on the line 6-6 of Fig. 2.

Figure 7, an elevation of the cast cup.

Figure 8 is a sectional elevation showing a modification of the apparatus shown in the other drawings, and

Figure 9 is a plan view of the modification shown in Fig. 8.

A indicates the base plate of the machine to which is secured an upwardly extending cylindrical standard A. A is an annular support secured to the standard A and serving to support the annular turntable B which, as shown, is held in place upon the support A by an annular bracket A The turntable B is, as shown, provided with teeth,

indicated at B on its outer periphery which are engaged by a gear C secured on a driving shaft C. Supported on the turntable B is the upwardly extending annular ring D in which are formed a series of equally spaced cylinders D, D D etc., which in the illustration shown run up as high as D. E, E, etc., are a series of ports leading into the bottoms of the cylinders D, D, etc, and extending outward to the outer periphery of the ring D. F is a channel for fluid under pressure, preferably air, connected with a source of pressure fluid through the pipe F and extending, as shown, over about half the circumference of the ring D. This channel is in communication, as shown, with the ports E during a portion of the circular movement of the carriers and during the remainder of their movement the ports are in free communication with the outer air. The ring indicated at F being simply a ring to hold the channel F in place or, if for structural reasons it is convenient to make it in the form of a channel like the channel F, it can be placed in communication with the outer air through a pipe as indicated at F Fig. 3. G, G, indicate gutters located at the top of the ring D to catch any metal which may be pushed over the edges of the ring. H and H indicate means for heating the upper part of the ring'D and through it the molds. Tlrese means may be electric heating coils or any other heating mechanism and must, of course, be regulated so as to impart the necessary amount of heat to the molds to prevent premature solidification of the casting. E, Fig. 1, indicates a similar heating coil surrounding the reservoir, to be hereafter described. I, 1, etc., indicate cylinders fitted and secured in the upper portions of the cylinders D, D, etc.,

- move up and down in the cylindrical bearings I As shown, these plungers have a reduced downwardly extending portion indicated at J which extends through the bottoms of the cylinders I, I, etc., and have secured to their lower ends cam bearings indicated at J 2 and J J J, ete., indicate pistons moving in the cylinders D, D, etc., and through which extend the plunger extensions J. K is a cam which during certain stages of the movements of the mold carrier comes in contact with the cam contacting surface J 2 of the plungers to move them upward, as shown in Fig. 4. K is also a cam which during a certain portion of the path travelled by the molds comes in contact with the cam contacting surfaces J of the plungers as shown in Figs. 4 and 5.

. L, Figs. 1 and 2, is a bracket secured to the top A of the standard A and supporting the reservoir L which, as shown in these figures, rests upon the top of the ring D and is'formed with a small outlet port indicated at L through which the metal flows into the molds as they come in registry with it. L is a conduit through which melted metal flows into the reservoir L and L an overflow conduit by which the level of the melted metal is maintained constant in the reservoir. M is a cutter, the function of which is tocut or wipe ofi' whatever metal remains upon the face of the molds. This cutter is located a short distance away from the reservoir on the side to Which the molds move after bein charged and, as shown in Fig. 4, is pre erably attached to a core M heated by electric heating wires, as indicated at H.

' In Fig. 6 I have shown stripping mechanism practically identical with that shown and described in my former patent, eonsisting of two sliding edges N, N, secured on the ends of arms N N, which are pivoted on the bracket N at N and each has a counterweight lever as indicated at N and N.

Referring to the modification shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the turntable B is here shown as having the mold carrying ring D, D, formed integral with it and in place of a series of cylinders D, D etc., of uniform diameter being formed in the ring there is formed in the lower portion of it a large cylinder indicated at D, D, and in the up per portion of the ring another cylinder indicated at d, d and the cylinder I, I, carrying the mold I at its top fits and slides in the portion 07, d and has attached to its bottom a piston I which fits in the cylinder portion D, D". The cylinder I,I, has the cylindrical perforation I extending through it as shown, in which works the plunger J. J in this construction is not attached to the plunger but forms the bottom of the cylinder D, D F, F, is a conduit for pressure fluid connected with a reservoir of pressure fluid through the pipe F, F, and registering with the ports E, E, at the top of the cylinder D, D. F is a similar conduit for pressure fluid supplied through pipe F and registering with the orts indicated at E. In this construction t e reservoir L does not rest upon the top of the ring carrying the molds or upon the top of the molds but is supported at a considerable distance above the molds, as shown, and the port L formed through the bottom of the reservoir is alternately opened and closed by the rotating disc 0' fitted on the rod 0 and having symmetrically disposed openings 0 formed through it in position to register with the port L The disc 0 is rotated by engagement with a gear wheel C on a driving shaft C.

In operationthe turntable is rotated at the regulated speed bringing the molds progressively into registry with the port L at the bottom of the reservoir L. The size of the port and the speed of rotation of the mold is so regulated that approximately the amount of metal necessary should form a cup is delivered into the mold in a comparatively fine stream which gives any air in the mold a chance to escape freely and for this purpose it is advisable to have a port such as is indicated at L in Fig. 4, by which the air can escape freely from the mold even While it is covered by the reservoir. Immediately after the mold is filled the port E of the cylinder in which the mold is located, the one marked D in Fig. 2 for instance, comes into registry with the pressure conduit F and the pressure fluid entering the cylinder acts upon the piston J 4 and through it upon the plunger J, forcing it u in the mold, as shown at the right hand si e of Fig. 4. This action is very quick as it should take place while the melted metal in the mold retains its full fluidity immediately after the casting of the cup. In this way 7 this is not important as, of course, the frictional contact of the plunger with the cup will hold it in place after metal has solidified until some power is applied. After the carrier has passed through 180 degrees of its path the pressure fluid is released and the piston J permitted to fall which it is at liberty to. do without carrying with it the plungerf After the cups have thoroughly set the cam K comes in contact with the cam contacting portions J at the ends of the plungers, see Fig. 4, and gradually raises the plunger or the cup supported upon it out of the mold and above the top of the mold so that the further travel of the carrier will bring the stripping edges N, N, under the edges of the cup as shown in Figs. 4 and 6. At this point the cam KVcontacts with the cam contacting portion J 3 of the plunger and pulls it down out of the cup and to the position in which the top of the plunger registers with the bottom of the mold and shortly afterward the mold again comes into registry with the reservoir for a fresh charge.

In the modification shown in Figs. 8 and 9, the mold at the time it comes into registry with the reservoir, is held in the elevated position shown'in Fig. 8, by the admission of pressure fluid to the under side of this piston I and immediately after the desired amount ofmetal is charged into it pressure fluid is introduced into the upper end of the cylinder D, D, causin the mold to move rapidly downward over t e plunger J which is held stationary by the cam K. This, it will be seen, is the full equivalent of the above described construction so far as it involves giving the same relative movements to the mold and plunger. The amount of metal delivered to each mold in this construction is regulated b the period during which the perforated isc 0' permits the ports L of the reservoir to remain open.

Having now described my invention what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is:

1. In a machine for casting thin metal cups a rotatin mold carrier, a series of molds carried t ereby a reservoir of molten metal supported above the path of the molds formed with a small delivery port in its bottom through which the metal flows in a fine stream into the molds and plungers having the form of the inside of the cups working throughthe bottoms of the molds.

2. In a machine for casting thin metal cups a rotating mold carrier, a series of molds carried thereby, a reservoir of molten metal supported above the path of the molds formed with a small delivery port in its bottom through which the metal flows in a fine stream into the molds, plungers having the form of the inside of the cups working through the bottoms of the molds, means for giving the carrier and molds a regulated motion and means for closing the delivery port of the reservoir after a limited charge has been delivered to a mold.

3. In a machine for casting thin metal cups a rotating mold carrier, 2. series of molds carried thereby, a reservoir of molten metal supported above the path of the molds formed with a small delivery port in its bottom through which the metal flows in a fine stream into the molds, plungers having the form of the inside of the cups working through the bottoms of the molds and means for moving the plunger relatively to the mold including a cylinder and piston and means for admitting pressure fluid to the cylinder whereby the plunger can be moved rapidly into the mold when it has received its charge.

4. In a machine for casting thin metal cups a rotating mold carrier, a series of molds carried thereby, a reservoir of molten metal supported above the path of the molds formed with a small delivery port in its bottom through which the metal flows in a fine stream into the molds, plungers movable through the bottoms of the molds and a, cutter located beyond the reservoir and operatin on the tops of the molds to cut ofi surp us metal forced by the plungers above the to s of the molds.

5. a machine for casting thin metal cups, a mold carrier in combination with a series of molds carried thereby, plungers working through the bottoms of the molds, cylinders and pistons whereby a relative movement is given to the molds and plungers to force the plungers into the molds, a conduit containing fluid under ressure arranged to connect with the cylin ers at points determined by the positions of the molds and cams arranged to actuate the plungers during the operation of stripping the cups from the casting mechanism. 

